Autism, Conspiracy Beliefs, and Cognitive Processing: An In-Depth Look
Monday, October 28, 2024.
Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is often associated with cognitive traits like analytical thinking, a focus on detail, and sometimes a preference for factual over subjective information.
These traits have led researchers to wonder whether autistic folks might be less likely to believe in conspiracy theories due to a stronger skepticism towards unverified claims.
However, the Amsterdam study presents an intriguing contradiction: the cognitive differences linked to autism did not translate to a significant variance in conspiracy mentality compared to the general population.
The Study Design: A Rigorous Approach to Testing Beliefs
This study’s approach was robust. Researchers analyzed responses from a total of 5,040 participants, including 682 folks with autism, all based in the Netherlands. They used the Conspiracy Mentality Questionnaire, which gauges a broad tendency to believe in conspiracies through statements like, “I think events which superficially seem to lack a connection are often the result of secret activities.”
Importantly, the questionnaire focuses on conspiracy mentality (a general inclination towards hidden agendas) rather than belief in specific conspiracy theories. The results suggested no statistically significant differences in conspiracy mentality scores between autistic and neurotypical participants, indicating that autism itself neither increases nor decreases general conspiracy thinking.
Alternative Theories and Contradictory Studies
While this study found no correlation between autism and conspiracy mentality, past research has highlighted areas that could make this link more complicated:
Social Exclusion and Anxiety
Some research suggests that experiences of social exclusion or chronic anxiety, which can be more common among autistic individuals, may correlate with conspiracy beliefs.
For example, social rejection has been identified as a factor that increases susceptibility to conspiracies because these theories can offer a way to make sense of feeling marginalized.
One study published in Frontiers in Psychology found that people with higher social anxiety showed a stronger tendency toward conspiracy beliefs, possibly as a coping mechanism. If autistic folks experience heightened social rejection, this factor could theoretically increase their openness to conspiratorial thinking.
High Systematic Thinking
In contrast, some cognitive traits associated with autism, like analytical thinking, could indeed act as a protective factor against believing in conspiracies. Autistic people often favor systematic thinking, a trait characterized by a focus on logic, rules, and details rather than the intuitive leaps sometimes required to believe in conspiracy theories.
For instance, a 2016 study in PLOS ONE found that people with high analytical skills were less prone to conspiracy beliefs, lending support to the hypothesis that autistic traits might protect against such beliefs.
However, the Amsterdam study’s findings didn’t bear this out in practice, suggesting that while traits like analytical thinking may contribute to skepticism, they don’t necessarily mean an automatic resistance to conspiratorial mentality.
Pattern Recognition: A Double-Edged Sword
Interestingly, within the Amsterdam study’s autistic sample, those with a strong knack for recognizing patterns had slightly higher conspiracy mentality scores. This could hint at a unique factor: when taken to an extreme, the inclination to find patterns can make people more susceptible to seeing connections or hidden meanings where there may be none.
This phenomenon, known as “illusory pattern perception,” is sometimes linked to conspiracy thinking, as people see connections between unrelated events. Yet, even this subgroup's uptick was modest and didn’t represent the overall trend for autistic folks.
Imagination and Susceptibility to Conspiracies
One unique finding from the study was that autistic participants with higher levels of imagination were somewhat less likely to engage in conspiratorial thinking.
This is noteworthy since high imagination levels are often associated with creative and divergent thinking, which might allow folks to consider multiple perspectives and make them less likely to gravitate toward rigid or all-encompassing explanations that many conspiracy theories present.
This finding aligns with broader cognitive science research suggesting that high imagination might help people entertain more nuanced views of events rather than one-size-fits-all theories.
Broader Implications: Breaking Down Stereotypes
The Amsterdam study's conclusions help chip away at the stereotype that autistic humans are either overly gullible or excessively resistant to outside information.
This stereotype oversimplifies the way autistic people process information, suggesting they are either rigid in their thinking or susceptible to influence due to social factors.
The truth, as this study illustrates, is more nuanced.
Autistic people engage in conspiracy beliefs at rates similar to the general population, indicating that cognitive diversity does not necessarily equate to heightened vulnerability to misinformation. As Roels emphasized, autism doesn’t make someone prone to conspiracy mentality—and it’s not a shield, either.
Limitations and Future Research Directions
No study is without its limitations. The Amsterdam study relied on self-reported survey data, which can sometimes skew results due to subjective interpretations of questions.
Additionally, while the Conspiracy Mentality Questionnaire is widely respected, it measures only a general tendency toward conspiracy thinking, not specific beliefs about particular theories.
This leaves room for further study on whether certain conspiracy beliefs—perhaps those related to personal or social identity—might resonate differently with autistic individuals.
Future studies could explore factors beyond broad conspiracy mentality, such as how personal experiences of social exclusion, trust in authorities, and perceived stigmatization intersect with belief in specific conspiracy theories. Just some thoughts.
Examining these dynamics could provide a more comprehensive understanding of how autistic folks, along with everyone else, interpret complex social narratives.
Wrapping Up: What Does This Mean for Autistic Folks and Society?
In a world rife with misinformation, understanding who is more or less susceptible to conspiracies has never been more relevant.
The Amsterdam study encourages a balanced view: cognitive diversity, including autism, doesn’t inherently make someone more or less likely to adopt conspiracy beliefs. This knowledge serves to further dispel myths, opening the door for more nuanced discussions about autism, misinformation, and belief systems.
Whether autistic or neurotypical, folks’ susceptibility to conspiracy beliefs is likely influenced more by personal experiences, social environments, and individual traits rather than diagnostic labels.
Embracing this complexity helps foster a society that respects and supports cognitive diversity, paving the way for a more inclusive world where everyone’s unique way of processing information is appreciated.
Be Well, Stay Kind, and Godspeed.
REFERENCES:
Roels, S., Begeer, S., Scheeren, A. M., & van Prooijen, J. W. (2024). Conspiracy mentality in autistic and non-autistic individuals. Cognitive Neuropsychiatry.
van Prooijen, J. W., & Douglas, K. M. (2018). Conspiracy theories as part of history: The role of societal crisis situations. Memory Studies, 11(4), 465–477. https://doi.org/10.1177/1750698017701615
Freeman, D., & Bentall, R. P. (2017). The concomitants of conspiracy concerns. Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology, 52(5), 595–604. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00127-017-1354-4
van der Linden, S., & Roozenbeek, J. (2021). Misinformation: susceptibility, spread, and interventions to immunize the public. Nature Human Behaviour, 5(7), 860–870. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41562-021-01136-0
Lantian, A., Muller, D., Nurra, C., & Douglas, K. M. (2017). Measuring belief in conspiracy theories: The Generic Conspiracist Beliefs Scale. Frontiers in Psychology, 8, 861. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2017.00861
van Prooijen, J. W., & van Dijk, E. (2014). When consequence size predicts belief in conspiracy theories: The moderating role of perspective taking. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 55, 63–73. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jesp.2014.06.006
Swami, V., & Barron, D. (2021). Analytic thinking, rejection of COVID-19 conspiracy theories, and compliance with mandated social-distancing behavior: Direct and indirect relationships in a nationally representative sample of adults in the United Kingdom. American Psychologist, 76(4), 500–516. https://doi.org/10.1037/amp0000711
Bowes, S. M., Costello, T. H., Ma, W. K., & Lilienfeld, S. O. (2020). Looking under the tinfoil hat: Clarifying the personological and psychopathological correlates of conspiracy beliefs. Journal of Personality, 88(6), 1145–1163. https://doi.org/10.1111/jopy.12534
Pummerer, L., Böhm, R., & Lilleholt, L. (2022). Conspiracy beliefs in times of crisis: The role of societal threat perceptions, conspiracy mentality, and context. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 98, 104245. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jesp.2022.104245